Disabled arrestee refuses to be silent, saying “freedom is not to be taken from us without a fight”

West Yorkshire Police arrested Julie Furlong on 18 November at a Leeds Lift the Ban protest — in reference to the proscription of Palestine Action. And she is refusing to let the arrest stop her from speaking out.

Furlong told the Canary:

I cannot live with myself if I do not do all in my limited power to protest genocide.

She took the action “to show the ludicrous nature of the proscription” of non-violent direct-action group Palestine Action.

Furlong stressed:

It is very important of course for the struggle for Palestinian freedom, and our own, that we continue and clearly say that freedom is not to be taken from us without a fight.

She added:

I will not be silent. Silence is complicity.

The Palestine Action ban is damaging British democracy

Furlong also described the absurdity of the police “arresting peaceful, largely elderly and disabled people for holding pieces of cardboard”, and the impact this has on both officers and Britain’s democracy, saying:

I think in many ways the police were stuck between a rock and a hard place. As an organisation of course, they exist to protect power and that is what they are doing. Forces have responded differently though in places and WYP decided to arrest us all.

As individuals, they tried to behave humanely. I only came across one unpleasant officer that day. None of them seemed to want to be there. They even took people into the station a different way so that we would not face any unpleasantness. Ultimately of course, arresting peaceful, largely elderly and disabled people for holding pieces of cardboard is not an acceptable part of a democratic society and only further damages their reputations.

She insisted that “rights we have enjoyed for decades are being eroded”, stressing that “our right to protest is under attack”.

In particular, she emphasised that:

The Terrorism Act is an appalling affront to civil liberties and is being used to stifle legitimate dissent.

‘Banned from the city centre, effective immediately’ with little consideration for accessibility issues

Furlong participates in the Women in Black vigils in Leeds, where attendees “dress in black to denote mourning for lost Palestinian lives”. The “regular peaceful vigils” in the centre of the city see women “stand in silence” in “protest at Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine”. But she took the extra step to risk imprisonment by holding a sign saying “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”

As she explained:

Any conviction under the Terrorism Act, even a section 13, is serious. Jail is a remote possibility. International travel is affected, work is affected, students may lose their places, DBS clearances are not possible — all of these also explain why older people are so disproportionately involved.

I cannot afford to travel abroad anyway, and I do not work.

Describing the conditions police gave her after her arrest, she said:

West Yorkshire Police issued us all with dates in 3 months’ time to report to another police station and 2 bail conditions. One, as expected, was not to take part in another PA event, but also they banned us all from Leeds city centre, effective immediately. This obviously affected most of us in getting home.

Leeds transport system is set up so that everything goes through the centre. I was expected to order a wheelchair accessible taxi at 8pm at night, wait for it, pay for it just to get across to where I could access my second bus. Others did not even live in Leeds and needed trains which they could not access.

The solicitors did get this condition lifted for some of us, but not everyone!

But none of this will deter Furlong from taking action.

As she insisted:

I will not stop marching for Palestine, or attending Women in Black vigils or anything else that is in my power.

She and those like her are at the forefront of the efforts to stop Britain’s heightening repression of dissent. And we should thank them all for taking a stand regardless of the consequences.

Featured image via the Canary